Leading through letting go

Image by Tung Lam from Pixabay

Jonny Pollock

Here is  a simple story that struck a chord with me. There are two questions that challenged my assumptions and priorities. 1) What is the real project? 2) Will I prioritise results or people?
Thanks to Jonny for allowing us to publish his original post here. Enjoy, everyone! — Michael Jemphrey

This summer saw a team effort in our back garden as my 12-year-old son and I prepared to build a raised garden bed. I am not in any way “handy” like this and had some doubt, but he was just so excited to be included and “grown-up”. Then came his inevitable request: “Can I do it, Dad?”

Efficiency told me to say no. I had things to do: boards needed cutting, screws needed putting in with a power tool. But something nudged me… This moment wasn’t just about wood and soil. So I let him try. Of course, the initial measurements were off, and all the screws fell on the floor. Tears welled. “I can’t do it,” he loudly announced. My hand twitched impatiently, ready to take over. Yet the real project was not a garden bed but a boy learning perseverance, and a father needing some humility! If I stepped in too quickly, I’d definitely save the project but perhaps stunt the growth of my son. I could easily take over, but lose the real lesson for him and for me.

Lessons for leadership

In our desire to develop leaders, taking over often feels like love. We justify it as quicker, neater, more efficient. But it can rob people of growth. Parents, pastors, and leaders all face the same tension: Will I prioritise results, or people?

Scripture reveals that God Himself chooses the slower path of formation. He could accomplish everything instantly, yet works through stumbling men and women. Jethro’s counsel to Moses captures it: “What you are doing is not good” (Exodus 18v17). Moses had to learn that real leadership is not doing everything himself but multiplying capacity in others. Efficiency, then, can be the enemy of formation. The Kingdom advances through patience and trust, not control.

Delegation says: “I give you this task because I need it done.” Development says: “I give you this task because you need to grow.” The first relieves the leader, yet the second equips and releases the follower. Why then do we resist development particularly in the church? We can point to time pressures of course, but often something deeper lurks. Sometimes our identity depends on being needed. Taking over reassures us that we matter.

Jesus Himself consistently resisted this temptation. When crowds were hungry, He told His disciples: “You give them something to eat” (Luke 9v13). Their inadequacy became the very place where God’s power showed. Jesus didn’t hoard ministry, He shared it, sending others to preach, heal, and lead. Paul did the same with Timothy, urging him to step into leadership despite his youth.

Growth always involves risk: risk of failure, of slower results – but without it, people remain dependent.

Measured in the short term, success looks like completed tasks. But in the long term for church leaders, success is people formed. And this kind of growth usually happens in small, ordinary moments, when a leader resists taking over and lets someone else wrestle through.

“Efficiency, then, can be the enemy of formation. The Kingdom advances through patience and trust, not control.”

That day in my backyard exposed how quickly I reach for control. Yet when I asked my son, “Show me your thinking about this,” he figured it out. Later, he proudly told his mother he had built the garden bed, not just “helped Dad”. That subtle shift revealed something deeper: he was beginning to see himself as capable.

The paradox of control

The paradox of control is the more we cling to it, the less others grow. The more we release it, the more capacity multiplies. Leadership worth following is willing to let go.

The garden bed now has sprouting onions and garlic, but the greater work was unseen, the confidence formed in my son, and the humility slowly forming in his father.

Perhaps that is God’s way too. Not overwhelming us with efficiency, but entrusting us with responsibility, even when we fumble – for the greatest gift we can give others is not our competence, but our confidence in their potential as image bearers of God.

Share your ideas and insights below under “Leave a Reply” or click the “Comment” button.

Evaluating the Mentoring Relationship in Progress

Anonymous SIL Literacy and Education Mentor in Africa

Somehow I couldn’t shake the feeling that we didn’t have the best or right goals for my mentee, even though she seemed happy with the progress we were making on them. What to do? 

I’d heard somewhere that it was good to evaluate the mentoring relationship half-way through its term. So we planned to do that. Michael Jemphrey graciously pointed me to mentoring relationship evaluation forms on the Mentoring Matters website for both mentor and mentee. 

We each filled them separately before meeting to discuss them at one of our monthly mentoring meetings. We each read through the other’s. My mentee was able to glean my “unspoken feeling” from the rating I gave on “I am satisfied with the mentoring relationship overall.” And then the answer I had given under the question, “Please share more about your experience in your own words” was a springboard for us to discuss her goals and to figure out where we could go, and others we could ask (her previous mentor, her supervisor) to add some more pertinent goals. We then did that at our next meeting. 

I’m happier that we are working towards things that count in developing her competencies, alongside her self-identified goals.

Reflection questions:

  • How do you and your mentee/mentor evaluate your mentoring relationship from time to time?
  • Would it be helpful to try out the forms mentioned in this post and use them as a springboard for a conversation about your mentoring relationship?

Share your ideas and insights below under “Leave a Reply” or click the “Comment” button.

Passing the Baton

Recently, Michael Jemphrey handed over leadership of SIL’s Robust Mentoring initiative to Darrel Kauffman. To mark the transition, we asked both of them to reflect on their journeys with mentoring.

How did you first get involved in mentoring?

Michael:
When I began training as a translation consultant in 2002, there wasn’t much mentoring happening in West Africa. But one consultant with a vision for what mentoring could achieve offered to mentor about a dozen of us at once. It wasn’t ideal—there were too many of us—but we still learned far more than if we’d had no mentor at all.

Later, when I became a consultant myself, I chose to mentor just one or two people at a time. That smaller setting allowed for deeper conversations and interaction as we worked side by side at the translation checking desk. The trainees also learned from one another through that shared experience.

I also benefited from informal mentoring. I had a mentor, about ten years my senior, whom I could approach anytime for advice or perspective. That kind of informal support has had a lasting impact on my own continued growth.

Darrel: My entry into mentoring developed mostly during my time as the Administrator for Programs and Partnerships in the Isaiah 55 Service Group and further developed while I was the Co-Director of the group (now the SCO). I watched numerous role replacements where someone left and another person was taken from a language project and plopped into an administrative role with little to no preparation. Then when we realized several years ago that 30 percent of our staff would be gone within five years we had to start thinking about succession planning and preserving as much of the intrinsic knowledge and experience that would be lost if that 30 percent just disappeared.

That was my start and then with involvement with the mentoring training offered and discussions related about getting as many people trained in mentoring as possible my understanding of where mentoring could be an effective development tool expanded. I have been part of peer-to-peer mentoring, the recipient of one-on-one mentoring and the mentor in other relationships.

From early on as I encountered needs for mentoring I have been challenged with how do we really make mentoring part of our culture in SIL and where might it be most effective to do.

Michael, could you share how the Robust Mentoring initiative began and how it has grown?

By 2019, it was clear that mentoring across Africa was uneven and inconsistent. So we gathered mentors from across the continent to ask: How can we do this better?

Out of that week came two key initiatives :

  • This Mentoring Matters website – a hub for resources and tools which Eszter Ernst-Kurdi, Training Coordinator for Francophone Africa at the time, got up and running in next to no time!
  • Eszter and I then collaborated on the Introduction to Mentoring course – a six-week program designed for mentors, mentees, and supervisors. 

Since then, the Introduction course has run  (and been helpfully refined!) more than 30 times in English, French, and Spanish, with about 20 participants in each session. Breakout groups have been especially valuable, creating space for rich cross-cultural exchange.

One of the most important lessons has been alignment: ensuring mentors and mentees start with similar and clear expectations; that can take a bit of discussion. Research shows that without training, only about 30% of mentoring relationships succeed. With training for both mentors and mentees, success rates rise to nearly 90%. Part of that remarkable improvement is better aligned expectations.

Building on that foundation, Eszter and I developed additional courses:

  • Practical Mentoring – for active mentors, with hands-on materials and debriefs.
  • Essentials of Mentoring for Decision Makers – a shorter course for leaders wanting to better support mentoring in their units or organizations.
  • …and arriving soon – Navigating Group Mentoring: In the Quest for Staff Development

How did the leadership transition come about?

Michael:
As Robust Mentoring expanded beyond Africa, it became clear the initiative needed a home within SIL at the global level. At the same time, I was taking on more responsibilities with the Creation Care team, which was also growing. It wasn’t sustainable to continue leading both.

So, together with my supervisor, we created a global Mentoring Coordinator role. Around that time, Darrel participated in the Essentials of Mentoring for Decision Makers course. His insights and passion for mentoring stood out immediately. After just a few conversations, it was clear he was the right person to take the baton.

Change in leadership can be a complex challenge. What is the role of mentoring in times of change? 

Darrel: There is so much to learn and adjust to and discover in any change process. Having someone who has gone through changes or has experience, as you replace them, adds a lot of background knowledge and comfort as one takes on a new role. It eases the transition.

What have you each learned about mentoring through this process of passing the baton between the two of you?

Michael: This transition has reminded me again how vital it is to seek the Lord’s guidance when forming a mentoring team. I’m deeply grateful for the way He prepared the path for Darrel to take up the baton—bringing the same passion for mentoring, yet with his own unique strengths and fresh ideas for the role.

Darrel:  It has been interesting as I discover what is happening in mentoring in various places around the world. I am learning to be patient in discovery and hold my preconceived ideas loosely and listen to the Holy Spirit through it all. It is a blessing to have Micheal to help guide me through this transition because I know that he has done so much to bring mentoring to where it is today and his experience and wisdom goes beyond just mentoring. It would be nice in some ways to be able to do a brain dump from Michael and get all he knows in one fell swoop. But then I wouldn’t be able to see how he interacts with people and how he has used his gifts to get Robust Mentoring developed as it is today. 

Darrel, what is your vision for the future of Robust Mentoring in SIL?

Darrel: What I have found within SIL Global is that mentoring is uneven and not consistent. I would like to get a Global Team together so we can identify where mentoring is happening and learn from each other what is going well and what isn’t. Then we can begin making mentoring robust at all levels in SIL and in many domains such as leadership, training, succession planning, and personal development. Also, my vision is to provide resources for mentors and mentees to develop a culture of mentoring so that mentoring becomes a part of who we are. I see mentoring as a valuable element in building both a healthy organization and healthy staff. I would also like to see a free flowing sharing space, accessible to all,  where we can ask questions or tell stories to continue to learn from each other.

Thank you for the opportunity to hear about your mentoring journeys and to get to know you better. We wish you both all the best!

Share your ideas and insights below under “Leave a Reply” or click the “Comment” button.

Creating a Framework

A Few Initial Thoughts from the Introduction to Mentoring Course

by Rob Bustin, Deputy Director and Language Programs Director
SIL Affiliated International Ministry Ethiopia (SIL AIM)

The framework this course has already laid out for a formal mentoring program is worth the price of admission alone …

We are only in the second week of “Mentoring Matters: Introduction to Mentoring”, yet its impact is already undeniable. Having served as a Language Program Manager (LPM) mentor in the first cohort of the SIL ALA Area internship program, I am approaching the upcoming second round with a sense of familiarity. However, this course is reshaping my understanding of what mentorship truly means. The framework this course has already laid out for a formal mentoring program is worth the price of admission alone—providing structure, intentionality, and clarity to what we take for granted to be intuitive, but in reality is an under-defined process. It compels me to reconsider how I will engage with interns, ensuring our interactions are not simply nebulous organic discussions  but framed to be deeply effective. 

One of the most personally important parts of the course is the structured progression through the “stages of a formal mentoring relationship.” The sequence—“Prepare → Negotiate → Facilitate Development → Move On’—has provided a level of clarity that I hadn’t previously articulated in my own mentoring work. Each stage demands intentionality: preparing with clear goals, negotiating expectations to establish mutual commitment, facilitating real growth through guided experience, and, crucially, recognizing when and how to transition out of the formal mentoring role. This structure is not just theoretical; it is practical and actionable. Already, I find myself rethinking my role in cohort two of the internship program, knowing that a well-defined mentoring relationship will be more professionally impactful than one left to unfold organically. 

The biblical tradition of mentorship underscores that meaningfully guiding others has a rich history.

Beyond methodology, the course’s use of scriptural examples has been illuminating. These narratives provide images to hang the major concepts, grounding abstract principles on the Word of God. The biblical tradition of mentorship underscores that meaningfully guiding others has a rich history. I am deeply grateful to those who have designed this course—its thoughtful construction has already borne fruit in my approach to mentoring. As we move forward towards the kick-off of the second ALA Area internship cohort, I do so with a sharpened sense of purpose, equipped with a more robust framework.

What specific goals and values do you want to prioritize in your mentoring initiative, and how can you design the structure and approach to ensure that it aligns with those intentions from the very beginning?”

Share your ideas and insights below under “Leave a Reply” or click the “Comment” button.

RESOURCES

02_Mentoring_PreworkDownload

Cohort Mentoring in Academic Domains

Many of us are painfully aware of the shortage of consultants in Bible Translation Organizations. What can be done about this? How do we train enough consultants well enough and quickly enough?

by Tim Stirtz, SIL Global Linguistics Coordinator

Image by Veii Rehanne Martinez, Free for Canva Teams

At the October 2023 Bible Translation conference, Teryl Gonzalez presented the paper Quality and Quantity: More Consultants, Better Trained. This was about mentoring translation consultants in cohorts as a way of multiplying the number trained as well as improving the mentoring given to each trainee. 

Inspired by this example, I suggested that those of us learning a participatory linguistics method do the same. In Nigeria, SIL is beginning the Mark Road Initiative, a four-year project to serve 35 language communities with initial Scripture translation, which may include the book of Mark. To assist communities in choosing well-informed orthographies for this Scripture, the plan is to use a series of two Rapid Grammar Collection (RGC) workshops. I was invited to assist with the first for the Zhire community, and to mentor six facilitators who would lead these workshops for other language communities of the initiative. Three facilitators were British, two were Nigerian, and one was British-American.

Just as in Teryl’s cohort, each facilitator learning the RGC method did all the preparation for the workshop as if they alone were going to lead the workshop. We met regularly through Zoom the four weeks before the workshop, as well as three days in person immediately before the event. Doing so helped us get to know one another, become united in our focus, as well as prepare the content of the workshop sessions. 

Then each afternoon of the workshop, after returning to our lodging, we discussed the day’s sessions as a group, giving each other feedback and planning the next day’s sessions. The person who led the session in the workshop always had the first opportunity to say how they thought the session went. In many cases, we were more critical of ourselves than others were of our sessions. The comments of the session leader often helped others know whether they thought the session went well or poorly and could then adjust their comments accordingly,  such as limiting negative feedback when the person already admitted to several things they would do differently the next time. 

Many of the comments given were positive, and those which were constructive nearly always met our goal of being kind, specific and helpful. Inexperienced facilitators learned how to better lead a session just by listening to the comments of others about what specifically went well and should be used again. Some facilitators were not used to giving feedback and grew in this skill by listening to others. Just being able to work together, bounce ideas off each other, and sympathize with each other contributed greatly to our own mental health. 

In several ways, the group feedback was seen as better than individual feedback ever could be. Different people noticed different things, so there were always more helpful insights given in our group than would have been possible by any one person alone. And especially when relating to those of a different gender or culture, the group dynamic helped insure that our comments were more appropriate than they may have been if given individually. This is because the more people that are listening to us, the more careful we are to say what everyone would find appropriate.

On the other hand, giving feedback is always tricky, and even more so in a group when many are listening. When someone leads poorly, it can be difficult to give enough specific, helpful suggestions without discouraging the person. In such cases, the group may hold back in saying what needs to be said out of fear of embarrassing the person in front of others. In that situation, the group facilitator could then give additional feedback to the person individually after the group feedback. 

In limited cases, such as for character evaluations, anonymous feedback might be appropriate, as in a google form document. However, our group agreed that for evaluating facilitator sessions in our workshop, the group feedback builds more trust and closer relationships than could happen with anonymous feedback. 

Having now tried cohort mentoring myself, I am convinced of its value and effectiveness, not to mention the number of well-trained facilitators that can be multiplied as a result.

I see potential for this kind of mentoring for many other skills in a variety of academic domains, especially where the skills are best learned in working with a language team. Although one-on-one mentoring has its place, whenever possible I will prefer to be involved in cohort mentoring, and encourage others to give it a try as well.

How could you envision using cohort mentoring in your academic domain ?

Share your ideas and insights below by clicking on “Comment”.

Unleashing the Exodus Effect

Some Mentoring Lessons for Consultants

by Michael Jemphrey, Anthropology & Translation Consultant

Image by Leremy Gan, Free for Canva Teams

Imagine this: Moses, the revered leader of the Israelites, receiving sage advice on management from an unexpected source—his father-in-law, Jethro, a priest, a faith leader from Midian!! In Exodus 18:17-23, Jethro finds Moses and God’s people exhausted by Moses’ well-intentioned efforts to help resolve each and every dispute. He then gives his son-in-law a crash course in effective leadership. What did that entail for Moses and what can we learn? Moses had to learn to look at others around him carefully and discern whom he could trust. He had to teach the law to these people. He would have had to trust people’s recommendations in appointing the leaders for the smaller groups of 50’s and 10’s.

Jethro’s counsel highlights the essence of leadership: understand one’s role, delegate authority, invest in mentorship, empower teamwork, and foster growth. Moses had to relinquish micro-management, and trust his team’s judgment.

Empowerment is Key

Giving people authority to decide is important and teaching them and trusting them to decide what they can (ex. which weightier matters to refer up the line).

Micromanagement Misery

Micro-managing stifles creativity and hampers progress. Resist the urge to control every detail, instead focusing on overarching goals and providing support where needed.

Continuous Growth

Just as leaders of tens could presumably become leaders of fifties and fifties become leaders of hundreds, avenues for testing and growth and advancement are important. We should be looking to encourage newly qualified consultants to get ongoing development opportunities.

Mentorship Matters

Mentoring programs offer invaluable guidance and support on the journey towards excellence.

Teamwork Triumphs

it is the backbone of success. People thrive in collaborative environments. Consultants must trust their team’s expertise and judgment and ensure there are controls in place to ensure accountability – but realize it is not humanly possible to exercise all those controls themselves!!

As we reflect on Jethro’s advice, let’s remember to periodically take our gaze off the detailed problems confronting us and consider the wider picture. Consultants who embrace collaboration and empower others will leave a lasting impact on their organizations and on their partners and on the peoples they all serve.

Here are some powerful questions to ask yourself and your mentees:

  • How else could this work be done ?
  • Who else could do this job?
  • How could I encourage them to get involved? 
  • Who all could these new people learn from?

Share your ideas and insights below by clicking on “Comment”.

Cross Cultural Mentoring

EMDC Workshop Testimonials

by Samantha Chang Deck, Community & Culture, SIL International

Dr. Sunny Hong and Samathan Chang Deck, photo credit: Samantha Chang Deck

In June 2024, I had the privilege of being the assistant trainer for a four day intensive workshop on Cross Cultural Mentoring. My mentor, Dr. Sunny Hong, was the lead trainer. This workshop was one of many offered at the yearly EMDC (Eurasia Media Distribution Consultation). The 15 participants, from 10 different nationalities and a variety of ages and backgrounds, were engaged and willing to share their own personal stories, which brought the subject matter to life. 

The first day began by contrasting the expectations for a mentoring experience from Western and Eastern perspectives. We then went on to cover a wide variety of cultural frameworks to show that there is a wide spectrum of human perspectives and approaches to communication, relationships, and life. Much like someone might learn general linguistics to understand the possibilities of human speech sounds or different grammars possible, we shared different cultural frameworks so that participants could recognize what preferences they might have. These frameworks also gave the participants a sense of the worldviews and mindsets others might come with. With the many backgrounds of the participants, we were able to quickly move from theory to real stories. 

We considered how these different perspectives could shape how people enter mentoring relationships and possibly lead to confusion, misunderstandings, or conflict. Participants were invited to reflect on their previous and current mentoring relationships and consider how these different cultural approaches might help them see interpersonal situations in new ways. Through exercises, discussions, and reflection, participants considered how they could adapt to better connect with those they mentor currently or in the future. 

Here is an account about the experience of the workshop from the perspective of one of our participants, DSeq, an International Director of South Asia in his organization.

DSeq with Dr. Sunny Hong, photo credit: DSeq

“Attending the Cross-Cultural Mentoring Workshop was the highlight for my leadership training this year. In 2023, I attended a workshop led by Dr. Sunny at EMDC Thailand and I was thankful to have the chance to hear her deep knowledge. 

When I saw that she was teaching a whole track on mentoring, this appealed to me. Since this is her PhD topic that she is speaking from in the sessions, her examples from the Eastern context were very relatable to my Indian context. For a very long time, I knew my leadership style was different from my culture. Sitting in these sessions, I was able to put it down on paper. There are things I do not do well, as a low context person. I have always felt that I was misunderstood by the leadership of high context people. And now, for the first time, I am able to become a chameleon adapting to the social norms. This greatly helps the work that I am doing on the field. 

This course has helped me to alter my style of leadership to my teams’ needs. I am no longer looking with a one mindset framework, but I am now a listener to the dynamics in the group and then changing my style accordingly.

The effort Dr. Sunny Hong put into developing the workshop (showing the western mindset and then transposing this onto an eastern mindset) gave me many things to reflect on. 

Her style of applying biblical principles to everyday contexts gave me ideas in my work with cross cultural partners. Samantha’s method of leading small group discussion in different cultural frameworks, helped me re-look at my marriage and parenting style as a father. This is something that I will always use in my walk with Him.

Consider taking this course if you feel that you are a fish out of water or a person who wants to know how to fit into a system without changing who you are. This course gave me that freedom to be me when others have different expectations.

I could see where I fit into [different cultural frameworks] and adapt, so that I can work better as a leader and as a dad.”

Here is another participant testimony by Justin Randolph, Associate International Ethnomusicology and Arts Coordinator, EthnoArts Consultant, SIL International.

“My experience in the cross-cultural mentoring training track at EMDC was eye opening. I was exposed to so many different cultural frameworks that people may be operating from as well as identify where I am on each of them. I am so grateful for language to identify conflict or other quirks in my mentoring relationships.

I am already planning meetings with my mentees to discuss their specific cultural context, and how they experience me as a mentor in terms of the various frameworks. This will help me learn what my blind spots are and serve them better.”

If you are interested in attending this workshop when next offered, or requesting custom training on cross-cultural mentoring for your team, please visit this page for an overview of content topics and contact Dr. Sunny Hong to learn more. 

Share your ideas and insights below by clicking on “Comment”.

http://www.emdc.info

Cross-Cultural Mentoring: in-person training at EMDC

Dr. Sunny Hong, senior anthropology consultant with SIL, is offering an in-person workshop at EMDC on cross-cultural mentoring. The four-day workshop will take place during the Post-EMDC Training, from the 1st to the 4th June 2024. If you are attending the EMDC conference, this is too good of an opportunity to miss! Here are some details…

Course description

In a mentoring relationship, similarity in relational expectations, communication styles, or shared experiences might lead to a more straightforward interpersonal relationship between a mentor and a protégé. But with more global partnerships and opportunities to learn from the expertise of those from different cultural backgrounds– the likelihood and benefits of cross-cultural mentoring relationships are increasing. The purpose of this workshop is to help participants understand key concepts in individualistic and collectivistic cultures, and learn how they can affect expectations, communication, and other factors in cross cultural mentoring relationships. Participants will also learn how to use the strengths from different cultures so that cross-cultural mentoring can be even more fruitful than mono-cultural mentoring. 

Who will benefit from this workshop?

Anyone who is a life-long learner, but especially those working in cross-cultural or intercultural relationships. Participants will learn about their own preferences for mentoring and how different cultures have other mindsets and practices in mentoring. Participants will learn how to adjust their mentoring practice to better serve people from different cultural backgrounds. Participants will learn how to mentor in a multicultural environment. 

What will you learn?

  • Understanding cross-cultural mentoring 
  • Mentoring issues in cross-cultural communication
  • Mentoring cross over different worldviews: with special attention to understanding honor and shame cultures
  • Understanding Cultural frame- applying Grid and Group, to help mentoring relationship
  • Leadership and power in mentoring
  • Cross-cultural conflict resolution in mentoring

Do you have any questions?

Please contact Dr. Sunny Hong here.

Image by Rosy / Bad Homburg / Germany from Pixabay

The Importance of Mentoring in HR and Staff Development

Three Perspectives to Consider

Nathan Huntsinger, Senior Director for Workforce Innovation Strategies, People Strategies – Global Team

For any organization that is focused on transforming their organizational culture through staff development initiatives, mentoring is a way to strategically invest in staff in a way that fosters learning, growth, organizational engagement and a healthier, more engaged workforce. As HR in SIL looks towards the future and the number of staff who will be retiring and leaving the organization in the coming years, we realize that there is a danger that we will lose decades of experience and knowledge without providing the opportunities our staff need to pass on that knowledge.

Mentoring is a great tool to facilitate the needed transfer of knowledge.

It is key that we equip and encourage our experienced staff members to share their expertise with our new or less experienced staff. Mentoring also provides opportunities for professional and specific skill development which in turn can lead to a more engaged staff and higher retention levels. Mentoring also plays a key role in succession planning by identifying and equipping our staff to take on key responsibilities in the future. 

Elvire Ngnoulaye, Leadership Development Co-Director in the Learning and Development Team (Workforce Innovations Strategies, People Strategies – Global Team) Organisational Development Team Member (Localisation/Organisational Development Initiative)

A sentence like “mentoring provides microlearning opportunities for busy staff in an effective way” resonates well with me. More than long demanding academic programs, microlearning allows mentees to be supported and equipped in their areas of development. This is due to the small doses of targeted and practical content, which naturally leads to a high absorption rate. This mentoring strategy is possible and fulfilling even with very busy schedules. 

I have precious memories of these types of sessions with my mentor. Our conversations focused on “small topics”. They varied in length, met different needs, but they always brought encouragement and a desire to improve. Despite our busy schedules, we could still meet thanks to the fact that learning content and learning time could be divided up in little chunks.

This gave me increasing confidence in what to learn and how to learn it.

Trying to replicate this strategy with others has been rewarding. I recently met with a younger colleague. As we chatted she said, “When I listen to you, hope and enthusiasm emerge … I feel I can learn from you, but I can’t do onerous learning. Would you be available for short targeted talks with me?”  To which I enthusiastically responded, “Yes, of course!” 

Stacey Wyse, Director for Coaching and Mentoring, SIL Global HR

Mentoring staff within your team and across teams is pivotal for fostering growth, enhancing performance, and cultivating a supportive work environment. By pairing experienced team members with those who are less experienced, mentors can share knowledge, provide feedback, and offer guidance that fits the individual needs connecting to the organizational goals.

This personalized approach accelerates skill development, boosts confidence, and promotes professional advancement.

Additionally, mentoring encourages collaboration, and communication among team members, fostering a sense of belonging and shared purpose. Through mentorship, staff members not only expand their capabilities but also deepen their commitment to team success, ultimately driving higher levels of productivity and satisfaction within the organization.

Reflection Question

Are there any benefits (or mentoring techniques) that you have experienced in staff development that are not mentioned above?

Share your ideas and insights below by clicking on “Comment”.

Graphic by sorembadesignz

Partial graphic by Leremy Gan Khoon Lay

Image by frankpeters from Getty Images

Practical Mentoring: Involving Mentees in Your Own Growth Process

Coleen Starwalt, Linguistics Consultant, SIL Nigeria

SIL Nigeria is a growing entity. Alongside new expatriate colleagues, we are successfully recruiting many Nigerians to work in all of our domains, including linguistics. As work expands, consultants like myself, are strongly encouraged (if not expected) to mentor others. This is especially true in the case of newer personnel, in order to increase their capacity for doing their jobs well, and to equip them into becoming mentors themselves. In order to better respond to this challenge within the linguistics domain, I have taken the Introduction to Mentoring course and am in the process of finishing the Practical Mentoring course.

My Whole-Person Mentoring Approach Attracts Leaders

About the time I started the Practical Mentoring course, I began mentoring one of our newer and gifted linguists. Up until this point I had been mentoring cross-domain, focusing on issues of personal and spiritual growth. The Lord brought me several leaders and experts, two of whom are Nigerians, who see their need to grow personally and spiritually. They desire to become more effective mentors, using a whole-person approach. I didn’t set out to mentor leaders, but those are the people the Lord has sent to me. Perhaps our greatest personnel assets are spiritually whole and personally whole leaders, irrespective of their domain responsibilities.

The Dynamic of our Mentoring Relationship Provided Direction as I’ve Worked through the Course

In addition to working together on whatever issue my mentee comes with, we frequently take a step back and discuss the mentoring relationship, what we are doing, and how to contextualize what they are learning in their mentoring of fellow Nigerians. My approach to practical mentoring has been to ask how I can better help my mentees become the kind of mentors they desire to be.

Mentee Input into Module Choices

In the Practical Mentoring course, the participant is required to choose five of the twelve modules offered. Instead of just choosing the modules myself, I sent the summaries to my mentees and asked them which ones they were interested in. They evaluated the modules both in terms of where they thought I needed to grow, as well as what topics would be helpful for them. They chose the following modules: ‘Setting clear goals’, ‘Helping the mentee apply new knowledge’, ‘Skills and attitudes’, ‘Advocating and building confidence’, and ‘Providing encouragement and vision’.

An Example of the Effectiveness of this Approach

Involving my mentees’ input into my module choices has proven helpful for my own growth, and especially for the growth of my primary mentee for this course. For example, the goal setting module proved timely as one mentee had many goals to prioritize. His goals covered practical, time-limited goals, as well as ‘soft’ long-term personal/character growth goals. In going through this process, I learned how to better coach someone in identifying and prioritizing his goals and my mentee learned a method that was transferable to those he had begun mentoring. As God gave greater clarity concerning my mentee’s current job assignment, he was able to re-prioritize his goals. It was extremely encouraging when he began reporting how God intervened in some of the seemingly impossible goals and how he had accomplished them much sooner than expected!

Reflection Questions

How have you included or how might you include your mentees in actively participating in your own growth as a mentor?

My holistic approach to mentoring also attracts those in my domain who perceive their need to grow personally, and not just technically. What is your approach when your mentee is hindered professionally because he or she is stuck somewhere personally or spiritually?

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